Changing Destiny
by AngelStorm21
Summary: What would have happened if Sara hadn't left the door unlocked for Michael? What if she'd changed her mind at the last minute and went back to fix her mistake?
1. Chapter 1

Sara ran out of Fox River Penitentiary as quickly as she could without drawing too much attention to herself. She couldn't believe what she had just done. The sky visibly darkened as she hastened to the car park and she could almost smell the rain that was about to fall. An eerie stillness suddenly engulfed the evening like the calm before a storm - a sure warning of things to come. In Sara's mind a storm was already raging. A torrent of questions echoed loudly inside her, tormenting her painfully and making sure that she was fully aware of the fact that she had no answers at all. One loaded question that kept unapologetically rearing its ugly head was "Why?" Yes that was the break-out question of the evening. Why ? Why had she just risked everything for a man she'd known for such a short amount of time? Why had she helped him break the law just because he'd asked her to? Why had he felt like he could ask her such a thing in the first place? And why the hell did she feel like she couldn't let him down?

Sara finally reached her car and fumbled in her bag for her keys. She paused when she located them, her fingers grasping them tightly. Keys were supposed to be so simple really but they were anything but. They were powerful entities filled with loaded messages and possessing the ability to close the world out or let it in. These particular keys had been the cause of much aggravation. She was sure Michael had stayed up on countless nights wondering how to get a hold of them and now that she had them, she herself had become Michael's key and she had let him use her. The events of the past couple of days suddenly all came rushing back to her so quickly that she felt faint. She closed her eyes and leaned heavily on her car. Images flashed through her mind – images of things that she had almost allowed herself to forget . . . her meeting with Michael's wife, Nikka – how Michael had taken advantage of her willingness to help – how Nikka had stolen her keys from right under her nose – and after all that she was going to break the law for a man who had manipulated her from the very first time they met. She shook her head, annoyed at herself and at Michael. She had made her share of mistakes in her life but she was finally past that now. She was finally back on the right track and she couldn't let herself jeopardize that – not like this.

"I can't do this. . .damn-it. . . . "

She backed away from the car slowly at first and then she turned and walked swiftly back to the prison.

"Hey doc. Back again already?"

The guard's voice startled her so much, that she visibly jumped but she recovered quickly enough for him not to notice.

"Yeah – I um – I left my umbrella in my office."

"Yeah you're right to want to go for it – they were saying it's really gonna pour down later tonight."

"Right. Thanks."

Sara walked past the guard and swiftly rounded the corner to the infirmary. She knew she couldn't just lock the door and then walk out again. That would look far too suspicious. She fiddled with her key in the doorway pretending to open the lock and that done, she walked quickly into her office. Glancing around, she eyed an old umbrella in the corner and felt a small wave of relief. Thank goodness she always kept a spare one at work. Reaching down to pick it up her eyes fell on the shelves directly in front of her and lying proudly in the midst of all the junk she kept there was a beautiful paper rose. The little relief that she had just felt swiftly vanished and was replaced by an emotion she couldn't quite distinguish. Perhaps it was remorse, perhaps it was something else. Grabbing the umbrella she turned and quickly left the room, this time locking the door firmly behind her.

As she walked down the hall she started to feel a little better - she thought she had done the right thing now and just as she was about to turn the corner and head for the exit an arm reached out of nowhere and roughly pulled her back while covering her mouth simultaneously. Another hand grabbed the umbrella roughly from her. Her eyes widened in shock but before she could even attempt to make some kind of move or sound, she felt a breath on her neck that made the hairs there stand on end. A coarse voice whispered threateningly in her ear.

"You goin' somewhere sunshine?"

"Hey - let go of her. What are you doing?"

That was a voice she couldn't miss. It was soft but oozing confidence. It was a voice of hope in what had appeared to be a hopeless situation a few seconds ago. It was Michael's voice.

"Well see here pretty, you know we need to get out through that room and your lil' girlfriend here just made that mighty impossible - unless you plan on tellin' us your real name is Houdini!"

"Let her go T-Bag"

He spoke slightly louder this time and with more intensity. Sara could almost feel his anger increasing even though she had her back to him. She felt T-Bag's grip loosen slightly but he didn't remove it completely.

"Hey man. I hate to break it to you bro, but we really need that key man – you know we do other wise we're screwed."

"I know Sucre – I know."

Michael slowly walked around to face Sara. He felt terrible. He'd never wanted it to come to this. She should never have been involved at all. It was the one part of his plan where he felt as though something else could have been done even though he knew that he had racked his brain for nights on end for another solution. She looked so fragile there now with T-Bag holding her in place but her eyes showed more than just fear. There was anger there too and a lot of it. He knew a lot of that was directed at him and he knew he deserved it yet he longed to see it gone. He longed for a chance to explain everything a bit more but there was no time and he knew that.

"Sara, I'm so sorry, but I'm going to have to ask you for your keys."

Her eyes narrowed as she looked at him but she made no formal reply. He slowly reached for her bag, never taking his eyes off her. Sara thought she saw them water slightly and she almost believed that it was hurting him to have do what he was doing but she had been tricked by Michael too many times before.

Michael found the keys and slowly walked to the infirmary door. He knew he had a huge problem now because they couldn't just let her go. The guard was right down the hall and Sara would have every right to inform him of what they were doing in the infirmary. Then he'd pull the alarm before they could even say 'escape' and it would all be over. He hesitated at the door knob still thinking of what he could do. The last thing he wanted to do was physically hurt her or tie her up so those options were just out of the question. Once he opened the door he walked back to Sara and took her arm, not quite looking her in the eye this time. To T-Bag he repeated,

"Let her go."

"You sure 'bout that, pretty?"

"I'm sure. Now let her go."

Once she was out of T-Bag's grasp Sara struggled to get her arm away from Michael. She opened her mouth as if to shout at him or cry out for help but Michael raised his arm and let three of his fingers linger over her lips. They stared directly into each other's eyes and silently reached an understanding.

"Uh pretty – I hate to interrupt this 'lil Titanic moment you got happening but in case you forgot – we're in the middle of a breakout here!"

Sara's expression hardened once again and Michael shot an angry look at T-Bag. He walked Sara into the infirmary and sat her down on her own chair. Standing next to her he relayed the next steps of his plan to his team and they got to work on prying the bars off the window. The plan was well executed and sooner than Michael could have hoped, Lincoln started to make his way across the wire. Still standing at Sara's side, his hand lightly resting on her shoulder now and acting as something of an understated restraint, Michael looked on. So far everything was going quite perfectly but he still had no idea what to do with Sara. Out of the corner of his eye he noticed someone fall heavily to the ground. It was Charles Westmorland. Michael ran over immediately to check if he was all right and Sara rose to run out of the room. She glanced back just as she reached the door and saw Michael stooped low over the older man, supporting the latter's head with his hand. They needed help. Medical help and that was something that she couldn't turn her back on. Not again. She crossed the room to where they were and leaned over the bleeding convict. Michael turned to gaze at her, a silent 'thank you' in his piercing eyes. She nodded slightly in acknowledgement and then turned her attention back to the injured man. A huge gash in his side became apparent as he lifted his shirt to show the wound.

"You've lost a lot of blood here – can you tell me your name?"

Charles was barely able to keep eye contact and was tottering dangerously close to unconsciousness.

"His name is Charles – Charles Westmoreland. Is there anything you can do for him?"

Sara looked up at Michael then got up and walked silently to the cupboard where she held the morphine. She gazed at it for a moment, images of her past flashing before her eyes and then shaking her head to clear them she quickly grabbed the bottle and a hypodermic needle. She brought it back to Charles and rolled his sleeve up to inject the drug.

"I can make him more comfortable and I can stitch him up but he's lost a lot of blood. He needs a transfusion more than anything else and I can't do that here."

"Michael . . ."

Charles whispered and Michael moved closer to hear him better. Noticing that they needed a moment Sara stepped away and went in search of the materials she needed to stitch up the gash in Westmorland's side. While concentrating on his wound she had hardly noticed the cons moving swiftly down the wire and to the wall on the other side but she saw them now. A boy, younger than the rest of them was stepping onto the ledge. She looked back at Michael and heard him promise something, though she wasn't close enough to hear what. The man that had grabbed her before was carefully watching her now as if he suspected that she might try to escape at any moment. He crossed the room to the door and made sure it was locked from the inside. Grabbing the keys from where they lay on the desk he picked a random one and jammed it in the door all the while leering in Sara's direction. With that he moved towards the window and grabbed the wire that would lead to his freedom.

Michael stood up slowly and turned towards Sara.

"Thank you for helping him - and for helping me."

Sara stared at him and he stared right back. As he gazed at her with his powerful eyes she felt a tingle rush down her spine and she held her breath as he stepped closer. She opened her mouth to say something but she never got the chance. At that moment the guard from down the hall appeared at the door. He stared at Michael in Bellick's uniform for a long moment trying to see if he could recognise him and then he looked around and saw two other cons in the room, one bleeding on the floor and the other sweating profusely in a state of high panic.

"What the hell is going on here?"

He pulled at the door and discovered that it was locked. Of course only the infirmary staff had the keys to that room (a fact that Michael had been painfully aware of for a long time now). Michael moved quickly and grabbed Sara around the waist. He whispered in her ear,

"I'm so sorry Sara, but you're going have to come with us."

It was then that the guard finally noticed the lack of bars on the window. He fumbled nervously for his walkie-talkie while banging on the door. Michael glared menacingly in his direction and shouted, "Stay back!" before half dragging Sara to the window. He could hear the guard shouting into his walkie talkie while continuing to attempt to break down the door. Michael caught snippets of the conversation but a state of panic had set in that prevented him from hearing it fully.

"Sound . . . alarm . . . escaping . . . hostage . . . doctor. . .out. . . .wall . . . infirmary . . . alarm!"

And then he heard it. That piercing noise that he had been dreading since the escape began earlier that night. Floodlights snapped on and almost blinded him for a moment. Squinting while his eyes adjusted, he pulled Sara up onto the window and got her to hold on to the wire. She hesitated.

"Its ok. I'll be right behind you – I won't let you fall. Just put one arm in front of the other to pull you along and use your legs as anchors."

Sara turned to look at him and she saw a streak of crazed desperation in his eyes that she'd never seen there before. She hated to admit it but it scared her a little bit. Even though she was almost certain that Michael would never hurt her she decided that now was clearly not the best time to put that theory to the test so she took a deep breath and started across the wire. She could see Lincoln beckoning her closer from the other side and she willed herself not to look down. Michael was right behind her paying close attention to make sure she didn't slip. In the distance he saw the guards running towards them and he edged Sara on.

"You're doing really great. Not much further now."

Sara made it across and Lincoln reached to pull her to safety. Michael himself was almost there when the wire suddenly gave way and he crashed painfully into the wall. Lincoln desperately tried to grasp his hands and finally managed to pull him up. Just in time too as Michael knew that right below them, the guards were closing in on Sucre's cousin. He slid down the pipe attached to the wall and felt his feet hit solid ground a few seconds later. He couldn't help but smile slightly – he was a free man. Phase one of the escape had gone perfectly. He turned and saw Sara staring at him from where Abruzzi held her in place near the trees. His smile slowly faded as he walked towards the escapees and the hostage. "Almost perfectly," he mentally corrected.


	2. Chapter 2

Sara awoke and was met by darkness so opaque that she had to blink twice to make sure her eyes were actually open. In the grogginess of sleep she tried to make sense of strange memories that kept floating in and out of her mind. She saw flashes of cons jumping over fences and being chased by wailing police sirens, she saw herself being dragged along with them, she saw dismembered limbs and heated arguments, she saw a plane and bullet resistant cars, lots of running and then nothing. The details were all hazy but as she remembered them adrenaline and fear rushed through her. She took a deep breath and smiled to herself as it dawned on her that the whole thing had been a particularly strange yet somewhat thrilling dream.

"Hey. You're up."

She jumped at the sound of Michael's voice floating towards her in the darkness. Clearly not a dream then, she thought. She could barely make out his silhouette getting closer to the bed and then she heard the grating sound of a match head being scraped against the striking surface on the side of a matchbox. In the dim light she watched Michael light a candle and carefully place it on the small bedside table to the left of him. He didn't make eye contact and Sara immediately got the sense that he was ashamed. Gazing at him in the candle light she was way more attracted to him than she would like to admit so she shook her head as if to shake away her feelings and tried to make conversation. There were so many things she wanted to ask but in the end all that came out was an almost pointless question.

"What – where – what time is it?"

"About 8am"

"Really?" She asked, surprised straightening up quickly. "Why is it so dark?"

"Oh - we have boards up on all the windows."

He finally looked up at her, a silent plea in his eyes. Those eyes were like pools determined to pull her in and when she realised that she was in danger of letting herself fall back into them again she suddenly got very angry and more than a little worried.

"Oh my God Michael, what have you got me into?"

"Sara I'm - "

"Yeah I know you're sorry – you never meant for me to get involved. Well guess what ? I am involved. I'm in this thing up to my ears whether I want to be or not! So you're going to have to start giving me some answers and no more lies – no more games or manipulations. Just be straight with me Michael – for once just give me the truth."

Michael swallowed hard and put his head in his hands. He had to try to explain everything to her. He owed her that much at least but it was hard to know exactly the right way to put it so he started at the most logical place.

"My brother was framed – you saw the evidence right ? – you believed it enough to show it to your father. I couldn't - I couldn't just stand by and watch them kill him for a crime he didn't commit. I owe him too much to let it end like that."

"Yeah but Michael – there are other ways. I mean – breaking out ? You'll be hunted all your lives."

"Yes but at least we'll be alive. At least Lincoln will be alive."

"For now - but they're not going to stop until they find you and drag you right back to prison and even if your brother was innocent before – he's not any more and kidnapping me? Michael - my father may not be the best guy in the world and he may not be interested in anything I have to say or in anything I do but he **is** my dad and he is very protective – he'll see this as losing and he hates to lose so he will do everything - even the unthinkable to get me back."

Sara paused, sat up properly on the bed and looked Michael right in the eye before continuing.

"Maybe if you go back. Maybe if you turn yourselves in. You could get more lawyers. Ones with really great connections to cut some kind of deal - reduce your time - "

"No Sara don't you see ? In that place Lincoln doesn't have any time left. Not even two weeks before they execute him. I had to get him out of there and if I had to sacrifice the life I had before this to do it then so be it because Linc deserves better than to have his life ripped away from him like that – he deserves better."

Sara stared hard at Michael and slowly her anger started to wear away. She saw the love he had for his brother, she saw his willingness to be part of the solution and she understood why he had to do everything exactly the way he did it.

"Hey you must be starved - how about some breakfast ?" Michael said, breaking the silence.

He smiled as he got up and walked out of sight into the room that was to serve as their 'kitchen' though there were no cooking appliances to be seen and only a small sink in the far corner of the room. Still, he found the accommodation far more pleasing that his prison cell. He turned back to look at Sara and he could just about make out her profile in the dim light. He hated to admit it but he was glad that she had had to come along with them. He'd prepared the best breakfast he could under the circumstances – some berries he'd managed to pick up very early in the morning and an apple he'd found on a tree not too far from where they were hiding out. He tried to arrange it the best he could but it was difficult considering they had no plates or cutlery of any sort. As he walked back into the room he noticed that Sara had settled herself back into bed again. He approached the other side of the bed and handed her the 'meal' he'd prepared. She looked up at him a slight smile pulling at the corners of her mouth.

"Wow Michael, you're really breaking out the five star treatment there."

Sara said with a small smirk.

Michael smiled, glad to hear that there was no longer any anger in her voice though he suspected that it was still there, buried somewhere beneath the surface. He knew he wasn't off the hook yet but he caught himself staring at her as she sat up in the bed. Her reddish hair bounced she moved her head slightly and he was mesmerised as her whole face glowed beautifully in the candlelight.

"So. . . are you going to give it to me or am I just supposed to watch you hold it?"

Michael smiled again snapping out of his reverie. His smile was broader this time.

"Oh sorry – and I'm sorry about there being no plates or knives or forks – this place isn't exactly the four seasons"

"I gathered as much," Sara said with a smile accepting the fruit from Michael.

After chewing on a few of the berries for a little while she looked up to see Michael still standing above the bed watching her eat.

"You know, you can sit down if you want."

Michael smiled and welcomed the invitation. As he sat down next to her on the bed his arm lightly brushed hers. They both looked down to the spot where they'd touched and then back up into each other's eyes.

"Sara - " Michael whispered before someone burst through the door. It was Lincoln, out of breath and in a state of panic. Sara had completely forgotten to ask where he'd been this whole time – him and all the others - but now was clearly not the time.

"Michael we have to go – now"

"Why – what's wrong?" Michael asked sharply, standing up immediately.

"I don't know how - but they found us"

"What ? That's impossible."

Michael raced into one of the other rooms and looked out of the only window that hadn't been boarded up. From there he had a direct view of the only road leading up to their hideout. Lincoln was right. At the far end of the road he could make out at least three police cars in the distance and he could just about hear their sirens wailing as they came barrelling down the long dirt road towards the hideout. He ran back into the room to see Lincoln attempting to remove all traces of their presence. Sara was standing in the corner looking quite worried, her apple and berries long forgotten. She glanced from Michael to Lincoln. The latter was running around gathering sheets and pillows and dumping them into a bucket that she presumed he would then incinerate. She looked to the former and noticed that his eyes were on her. Sara stared back at him her eyes widening slightly. She knew that look. She was finally starting to recognise it. She'd seen it before Michael had kissed her in the infirmary and she'd seen it before he'd asked her to help him with the escape. He wanted something from her again. It was like a never-ending cycle with him but she decided to hear him out any way.

"Sara – I can't force you to come with us this time but - I need your help. We need your help."

Lincoln looked up when he heard this.

"Michael come on man, we don't have time for this. Leave the doc here – she'll be safe. They think we took her hostage."

"We did Linc."

"Ok – so let's get out of here."

"Linc could you go prepare the way – We need the passage opened but make sure you do it - "

"- Like you showed me last night. Got it. Hey listen, don't be long ok ?"

"I won't be."

With a final nod in Sara's direction, Lincoln disappeared into the darkness leaving the bucket full of sheets in flames in one corner of the room. Michael turned to Sara once again the urgency clear in his eyes and voice as he started to speak.

"I have an idea, but first I need to know – will you come with us ? Willingly I mean – because I don't want you to have to do anything against your will – I know it's a tough choice to make but – we don't have much time. Will you come with me ?"

Sara sat down heavily on the bare mattress. He was asking her to turn into a fugitive. Hadn't she been through enough ? Michael noticed the torrent of emotions flickering through Sara's face. He knew what this decision must be doing to her so he needed to make one thing clear.

"It won't be forever. They'll always think of you as a hostage and this will always be a kidnapping in the eyes of the law. You won't be doing anything wrong."

The wailing sirens were coming closer and closer. She needed to make a decision - now. Michael stretched out his hand to her. Her eyes were locked on the floor as though she were fixated with something there that he couldn't see. He lifted her chin up lightly and searched for an answer in her eyes. Her breath caught in her throat and she swallowed hard as she felt herself drowning in those powerful blue eyes once again.

"Will you come with me Sara," Michael asked softly, his hand still outstretched.

Sara slowly moved her hand into his, never breaking eye contact. Her eyes widened as she realised what she was saying. Her body seemed to have reacted before her mind could consciously make a decision. She blamed it on the adrenaline but it was done now and she couldn't take it back so she smiled slightly and said,

"I guess you never know when a hostage will come in handy, right?"

Michael smiled, relief smoothing out the lines in his forehead and then he snapped out of it as he realised that the police had almost arrived on their doorstep. He quickly ran into the same room as before and came out holding a small bag. From it he removed a rope and a knife. Sara looked from Michael to the knife he was holding and paused for a moment. He grabbed a chair from the far side of the room and beckoned Sara to it.

"We're going to make it look as though you were tied up here. But there's no better way to make it look like something happened then by actually . . . "

His voice trailed off as he stared down at the chair. The message was clear and Sara moved towards him. She sat down and closed her eyes for a moment. The sirens were much louder now but she realised that Michael wasn't moving. He was just staring at the rope in his hands.

"Michael come on – you said it yourself – we don't have time."

Her words pulled him out of his trance and his heart jumped a little at her inclusion of the word "we". He quickly got started on the task at hand. After tying her quite lightly to the chair he grabbed the knife and started rapidly cutting the rope off. There was a loud noise outside that sounded like a gunshot and Sara jumped which caused her to accidentally slice her forearm on the knife. Michael gasped. A sharp pain shot up Sara's arm but she bit down on her lip to stop herself from crying out.

"Sara – oh my God I'm so sorry – are you ok?"

"Mmn – I'm fine – don't worry about me – we should get out of here."

She was right of course and Michael hated to admit it but the small pool of blood that was falling down Sara's arm to the floor added perfectly to the effect that he was going for. He quickly finished cutting the rope and ripped off one sleeve from his shirt so that Sara could use it to try to stop the bleeding.

"Thank you."

Michael put an arm behind her back and led her forward.

"Come on, this way."

Together they ran out of the house through a side door just as three police men entered through the front door while two circled around the back, guns ready and each man alert. They spread out throughout the house each one taking a different room.

"Clear"

"Clear"

"Clear"

"All clear out back"

"We must of just missed 'em."

"Got somethin' in here, boss"

"Looks like the hostage is still alive but with a nasty cut on her."

"From the amount of blood it doesn't look like it was too deep though and the blood's still fresh so they haven't been gone long."

"Is there a blood trail?"

"No – they must have wrapped it up in something when they left."

"All right – let's secure the perimeter – make sure they're actually gone."

"Yes boss – you comin'?"

"Yeah I'll be right out – I gotta make a call first."

Sergeant O'Brien sighed as he searched for a particular number in his phone's memory. This would not be a pleasant call. He heard the person on the other end pick up and he braced himself.

"Bellick."

"Officer Bellick, its Sargent O'Brien here - I just wanted to let you know that I followed up on that lead I talked to you about a couple of hours ago – you know about them cons that escaped - "

"You found them?"

"Well yes and no sir."

"What the hell do you mean yes and no? You either found them or you're a useless piece of trash not worth the uniform you're wearing!"

"Well sir, um it seems my men and I found their hideout but by the time we got here – they were gone."

"Gone where?"

"Well, I don't know sir but I sure am gonna do my best to find out."

"What about the doctor – the hostage they took."

"Well we found signs that she'd been tied up here and there was a small amount of blood indicating that she was probably wounded as well but I don't think she was hurt too badly."

"You don't think?"

Bellick's voice suddenly took on an even more sinister edge.

"Well no sir, there wasn't a very big pool of blood – of course we don't even know it was hers yet – we're going to take a sample back to the lab for testing."

"Fine do whatever you have to do – call me when you have an update and find me those damn cons!"

There was a sharp click on the line clearly indicating that the conversation was over.

"Yes sir," Seargent O'Brien said softly before heading out to join his officers in the continued search for the escapees.


	3. Chapter 3

Sara and Michael rushed to a shed well hidden by a clump of trees about 100 metres behind the house while the police officers were occupied on the inside. They crouched low behind the underbrush taking care not to make any loud noises. When they finally reached the shed, Lincoln was pacing impatiently in the shadows behind it around what appeared to be some sort of opening. The opening was a tunnel of some kind leading down into murky depths below. Michael went down first without hesitating and helped Sara down behind him. It was darker down there than in had been in the boarded up house. Sara's eyes took a good thirty seconds to adjust and even then she found it extremely difficult to make out Michael's profile and he was standing right in front of her. For a moment she wondered how she was supposed to see to follow him in the darkness. Almost as if he had guessed her thoughts, Michael instinctively reached behind him and found her hand. With him leading the way they started edging slowly along the tunnel. Sara tried to make out where they were going but she still couldn't really see anything and the pain in her arm was starting to grow, now that the initial shock had worn off.

Lincoln trailed behind them firstly making sure that the opening was securely closed and then making sure that no one was following them. In an attempt to break the nervous silence and to forget about her arm, Sara tried to strike up a conversation.

"What is this place?" she asked. Her voice echoed loudly in the tunnel even though she had whispered and it startled her for a moment.

"Its an old sewage tunnel that hasn't been used in about 40 years" Michael whispered back. "It'll lead us past the town and into the woods on the edge of it."

"You really like your tunnels huh bro?" Lincoln smirked from the rear. Michael smiled at his brother and said,

"They do have their uses."

They continued in silence for what seemed like hours and the temperature in the tunnel appeared to increase progressively, the further along they went. The air was starting to suffocate Sara and beads of sweat began to appear on her forehead. She wasn't the only one that was growing uncomfortable in the confined space of the tunnel. Lincoln was breathing heavily behind her and Michael had slowed his fast pace by stopping to wipe his forehead every 30 seconds or so. Suddenly, Sara tripped over something and she threw her arm out instinctively to regain her balance. She needn't have bothered because Michael quickly turned and caught her, his hand accidentally grabbing the area where she had been cut and causing her to gasp audibly. He felt that his shirt sleeve had been soaked through with blood and released her arm immediately. The worry in his voice was clear as he asked,

"Are you ok ?"

"I'm fine - I just tripped over something that's all"

That was not what he had been referring to so Michael remained unconvinced. Her tone was hurried and very matter-of-fact and he recognised it well. She always used it when she was trying to cover up her true feelings on a subject and he was sure that if he had been able to see her eyes they would mirror exactly what she really felt - rather then what she said she felt. Lincoln rounded the corner and nearly crashed into Sara and Michael.

"What's wrong ? Why have we stopped?"

"Just taking a little break." Michael replied

"Good idea. I keep doubling back to make sure there's no one behind us and as far as I can tell the coast is clear. You alright there doc ?"

"I'm fine."

The three of them proceeded to sit down with their backs against the rounded walls of the tunnel. Michael ripped off his other sleeve and moved towards Sara's arm.

"May I take a look ?"

Sara couldn't help but smile to herself as she handed over her arm. The situation was entirely ridiculous - here she was in the middle of an impossibly dark sewage tunnel, at some undisclosed location - being looked after by an escaped convict who was now on the run with his brother. If she weren't actually living it – she would never have believed it could happen! A picture of her father's stern face flashed into her mind and her smile slowly faded. He certainly wouldn't be surprised at the fact that she had landed herself into such a predicament. In fact, he'd probably even find some way to suggest that it was all her fault that he would once again have to use his influence to keep her out of trouble. She was brought out of her trance by the sound of Michael's worried voice.

"You've lost a lot of blood. I think you might have to go see to a doctor or something if we can't get it to stop."

"Michael, aren't you forgetting something?"

Michael had been squinting in the general direction of Sara's arm for about a minute but he couldn't properly examine the damage since he really couldn't see much of anything at all. As Sara spoke he looked up at her and some of her hair brushed lightly against his cheek. For a moment he forgot that she had spoken to him.

"Michael ?"

"Yes ?"

"I'm a doctor remember?"

Michael smiled. He had almost forgotten that for a moment there but it still didn't stop him from worrying since, once again, it was his fault that she was hurt.

"Sara this is all my fault – I never - "

At that moment they heard a dog bark somewhere in the distance. Lincoln got up immediately and ran back down the tunnel a little bit, his hand trailing along the wall as it had been when they had been going the other way to allow him to manoeuvre in the darkness. Michael helped Sara up and then stared in the direction that his brother had run. His body grew tense as they waited but they didn't have to wait too long before they heard Lincoln's hastened footsteps coming back in their direction.

"Ok I didn't hear anything down there but I think we'd better get moving anyway."

Michael took Sara's hand once again and continued to lead the way. After about another hour and a half of trekking through the darkness Michael finally came to a stop and started feeling along the wall for something. Lincoln went to join him and asked,

"Is this it ? Are we here?"

"I think so – but I can't seem to find the panel."

Michael felt a sense of dread as he remembered the unfortunate incident he'd had with the pipe leading to the infirmary. If the same thing happened here they would have to double all the way back and risk complete exposure. He continued frantically searching for the handle that would open the panel they were looking for and Lincoln starting feeling along the wall as well. Sara stepped out of their way and she leaned back on the wall to rest. As she did so she felt something dig her in the shoulder. It was the handle they were looking for. She pulled down on it hard and a small line of light appeared through the crack she'd caused. Michael and Lincoln turned towards the light and even in the predominantly dark tunnel, relief was evident on both their faces. Together all three of them pulled down on the handle and with one final metallic screech of protest it gave way. Light flooded the tunnel and momentarily blinded the trio as they winced and turned their heads away from it. It took a moment for their eyes to adjust but when they did it was clear that they were in a completely different environment now. Long gone were the dry and dusty roads and they had been replaced by thick trees and underbrush. There were even a few wild flowers growing among the trees and birds chirped happily from their hidden perches. Michael made his way out first and helped Sara out after him. Lincoln came out himself and shut the panel securely when he was out. All three of them stood for a moment, enraptured with the sights around them.

"Wow" Sarah whispered.

Lincoln looked all around him in awe and then said,

"Well one thing's for sure – we're not in Kansas anymore!"

Michael chuckled as he turned and started to lead the way once again.


	4. Chapter 4

"Michael," Sara called out, breathing heavily. "I don't think I can – go much further."

They had been trudging through the dense woods for what seemed like an eternity now and she needed a break. Michael was getting quite tired himself but he knew that it would be best if they got as far away as possible while they could still see where they were going.

"Its just a little further – then I arranged for some transportation."

Sara didn't really see how a car would manage to drive them through the woods but at that point she didn't particularly feel like contemplating it. Perhaps they were coming to the edge of the woods and there was road somewhere nearby. Sara sighed and imagined herself comfortably seated in a car with the air conditioning brining relief from the heat that they had endured both in the tunnel and as a direct result of their little trek through the 'jungle'. With new found energy she bounded after Michael, the thought of sitting in the car edging her on.

They soon reached a small clearing in the woods and Michael stopped and looked around. He smiled as his eyes locked on what he had been looking for.

"Ok – we're here."

Sara looked around but she saw no sign of a car. Instead three wild-looking horses stared directly at her from the other edge of the clearing where they were tied to three separate trees. She looked from the horses to Michael, an incredulous look on her face.

"Horses? You got us horses ?" she asked, a frantic edge present in her voice.

Michael was still smiling in the direction of the horses, clearly glad they were there. Sara was not amused.

"I got us horses," Michael confirmed with a slight nod as he started to make his way towards them.

Seeing the approaching people the horses became quite agitated and Sara swallowed hard as she watched them.

"Ah – before we go any further Michael – I feel like I should tell you that I don't really have much luck when it comes to horses. It's not like I have anything against them but – they seem to want to kill me anyway!"

Michael stopped and turned to look at Sara. As he did he caught sight of her arm. The bleeding must have been much worse than he had originally thought because she had once again bled completely through the second sleeve that he had wrapped around the wound. Sara caught him looking at her arm and looked down herself. With all the hiking they had been doing she had almost forgotten about it. A horse suddenly neighed loudly and they both turn to see what was happening. The largest horse, a proud brown stallion was thrashing his head wildly and preventing Lincoln from getting a proper hold on the reigns.

"Uh- Michael?" Lincoln called out

"Yeah?"

"I don't think these horses are people friendly."

Michael frowned and carefully walked towards his brother and the unruly horse. Eventually, they managed to get him to calm down enough so that Lincoln could mount. Michael then looked over at Sara and cupped his hands to give her a boost onto the light brown mare that she was to ride.

"Ready ?"

"As I'll ever be."

She hesitated for only a moment before getting on to the horse. When all three of them were ready and securely seated on their horses, Michael led them all through the clearing and onto a concealed path to the left of it. They continued at a much quicker pace than before and Sara was soon so mesmerised by the sound of the horses' hooves clattering along the ground that she completely forgot her initial discomfort and hardly noticed that the sun had started to set.

"Sara – you ok back there"

"Fine"

"Ok it's almost time to let the horses go."

Five minutes later, that's exactly what they did. Though she hadn't been too keen on the horses at first, Sara had to admit that they made the journey a whole lot easier and now that it was almost dark it would be much harder for them to travel on foot.

Michael sent the horses down one path leading to the left, presumably to confuse anyone who may have picked up their trail. They then climbed through a few bushes on the right and landed on another path. This one was not as well defined as the one they had been following. Trees had grown along it and at times it became quite difficult to see exactly where it was leading but Michael showed no signs of slowing down until he came to a dead stop and looked around him, a slight frown on his face. Sara and Lincoln both looked at him expectantly and he soon began to move again but Sara's confidence in him began to waver.

"Michael, are you sure you know where you're going ?"

"Don't worry – I spent months studying maps of this place – I know it like the back of my hand."

Sara paused for a moment before kicking a hollow bark out of her way and continuing after Michael.

"Why do people say that?" she asked, managing to sound perplexed and slightly agitated at the same time.

"Say what ?"

"That they know something like the back of their hand. I hardly know the back of my hand at all. I mean, if you asked me to name one thing that was different or distinguishing about the back of my hand without letting me see it – I'd have no idea what to tell you. So really – saying that you know something like the back of your hand would really mean that you hardly knew it at all – and that's something that I would find quite disturbing in this case!"

Lincoln chuckled behind her and Michael smiled as her turned to look at her.

"I never pegged you for the philosophical type."

"Well there's a lot you don't know about me Michael."

"Oh really?"

"Yes – really." Sara baited, smiling herself now.

"Like what ?"

"Well it would be way too easy if I came out and told you just like that"

Michael laughed and said,

"Fair enough."

It was then that they all saw it. A small cottage seemed to have appeared out of nowhere and was sitting right in front of them. It blended in so well with its surroundings that if they were any further away from it Sara would have sworn that is was just another clump of trees. It was made out of logs that had clearly seen better days but it was sturdy and it was shelter and they were all glad at the thought of being able to rest for the night. Lincoln walked up to the door and pushed against it. After some resistance, it finally creaked open. It was dark inside but not as dark as it had been in the boarded up house earlier that morning. Michael went into one of the rooms and rummaged around for a while before coming out with about a dozen candles and some matches. Sara found a comfortable chair in what could pass as the living room and thankfully sat down on it without bothering to brush off the layer of dust it wore as a cover. Michael came and placed a candle on the floor next to her. He looked up at her from where he had stooped down and the candlelight cast shadows that danced on his face. His eyes seemed to light up as he gazed at her and her breath caught in her throat as she looked right back.

"I found you a first aid kit doc – so you can patch that cut up."

"Thank you," Sara said, breaking eye contact with Michael and smiling at Lincoln.

"We should probably go out and get some firewood before it gets any darker Mike."

"Yeah" Michael said rising to join Lincoln. With one last glance at Sara he disappeared through the door and went after his brother.

Left alone in the little cottage Sara gazed into the candle light, captivated by its dancing flames. Now that she had a moment to breathe, a moment to stop and think about everything that had happened that day, the thoughts rushed around her head like trained thoroughbreds on a race course. She suddenly realised that she was practically a fugitive. She could have been at home – in her own bed – safe and sound but instead here she was, in the middle of the woods with two cons and every cop from here to Alaska on the lookout for them! Not to mention the thousands, if not millions of citizens who had undoubtedly seen their pictures all over the news! There was probably even some kind of reward for finding them by now and she was well aware of the fact that people would do almost anything for money. And here she was – right in the middle of it. All because she had allowed herself take Michael's hand that very morning and she'd let him lead her right into this alternate life. It had been a snap decision and she'd made it without really thinking about the consequences. She was all the way in now - whether the authorities realised it or not and she would always have to live with the choice she had made. Still, she couldn't help but feel a trill at the excitement of it all. There was no going back now – no changing her mind. She'd reached the point of no return and run right past it and she hoped to God that she'd made the right decision.

Michael and Lincoln were on their way back from picking up wood when Michael looked in the direction of the cottage and noticed that the door was half open. He hit Lincoln's arm to get his attention and they both stared at the open door. Michael slowly put down the armful of wood that he was carrying except for the largest and thickest piece. Lincoln followed suit and they approached the cottage quietly. Before they had taken more than two steps, a grey wolf stepped tentatively out of the small house and onto the porch. Michael froze, the piece of wood primed above his head, ready to launch an attack. Lincoln accidentally stepped on a twig that broke and caused the wolf to look in their direction. Both men remained as still as they could each one trying not to breathe too loudly or make any sudden movements. The wolf soon seemed to lose interest and sauntered off in the opposite direction. Michael ran up to the house his heart thundering in his chest. For a moment he feared the worst and when he got inside there was absolutely no sign of Sara. He looked around frantically before calling out,

"Sara ? Sara? Where are you?"

Sara emerged from the bathroom, a slightly perplexed look on her face. Michael breathed a sigh of relief and Lincoln smiled. Sara looked at Lincoln first and then her gaze settled on Michael for a moment before she asked,

"What's going on? I'm right here."

"Well – we saw a wolf coming out of the door and I though - "

Sara smirked and cut in,

"You thought I got eaten by a wolf? Why grandma – what a vast imagination you have!"

They all laughed and it was clear that the act itself was a therapeutic release. For a moment they forgot all their troubles and were just glad of their temporary freedom. Michael had to admit that when she put it like that, it did sound completely ridiculous. However, even though she made light of the situation, Sara was touched by Michael's concern. Still smiling, Michael moved into the kitchen and rummaged through some cupboards. He found two cans of hotdogs and luckily the date had not yet expired. Unfortunately though, there were no frying pans and the old stove that occupied one whole corner of the kitchen was clearly no longer in working order. It now had some kind of plant growing straight through it. They were just going to have to cook the old fashioned way.

Lincoln soon got a fire going and Sara had managed to patch up her arm nicely. Michael scraped the outside layer off three sticks and gave two of them to his companions while keeping the third for himself. He then proceeded to open the cans of sausages and he handed them around. Sara laughed as she tried to get her hot dog to stay on the stick and she and said,

"Wow – I haven't done this since summer camp when I was about 9!"

Michael chuckled, sitting next to her on the rug in front of the fire.

"You went to camp as a kid?"

"Yeah – didn't you?"

"No – I never really got a chance. I mean, my mom died and my dad disappeared so there was never really much time for that kind of thing. But Lincoln went – right Linc?"

"Yeah and let me tell you – you didn't miss much – strange songs and campfires and being restricted to one small area for crazy periods of time!"

"You mean like prison?" Michael asked and they all laughed again. That was how they spent their evening reliving stories of their past by the fire and generally enjoying each other's company. Until Sara finally sat back with her back against the couch and quickly fell asleep. Michael reached behind him and grabbed the blanket from the sofa. He wrapped it gently around Sara and then sat back comfortably himself. For the first time, in a long time he could truthfully say that he was content.

Miles away back at the house the fugitives had left that morning dogs were still roaming the area in search of some trace of them. Finally, a victorious dog began barking frantically and the police officers rushed to investigate. At first it was impossible to see anything at all but eventually one officer's flashlight shined on a single drop of blood. Sergeant O'Brien glanced around at his officers and said,

"Well boys, it looks like we've found ourselves a trail."

With that he turned and dialled a number on his phone.

"Bellick"

"Sergeant O'Brien here, sir"

"What news do you have?"

"Well sir, it seems the dogs have been able to pick up a trail. Seems there was a blood trail we just couldn't find it at first but it's only a matter of time now till we find them"

"Well then get the dogs on it and find me those damn cons!"

"Yes sir, we'll get right on it"

With that Sergeant O'Brien got off the phone, gave his orders and the search for the Michael, Lincoln and Sara began . . .


	5. Chapter 5

After calling Bellick and sharing the fact that his team had found a blood trail, Sergeant O'Brien realised that his victory call had been somewhat premature. It took his team another hour and a half to find that the trail led to a very well hidden shed roughly a hundred metres from the hideout. It had gone un-noticed before because a thick canopy of trees concealed every part of it and it seemed to blend right into the background. By the time they discovered it, dusk was upon them. As they approached the small structure, O'Brien signed to his men to surround it and they all stood in their positions, guns ready and awaited his signal. He paused for a moment listening for any movement inside the shed since there were no windows for him to look through but when he heard none, he charged at the door and barrelled through it, two officers right behind him. One pointed his gun to the left, the other to the right but they needn't have bothered. The shed was empty. O'Brien holstered his weapon and looked around with his hands on his hips. The shed was completely empty and coated with a thick layer of dust. On top of that, it seemed that none of the dust had been disturbed except for in the area through which they had just charged. The wood that made up the door was old and hadn't given much resistance but it didn't look as though the cons had even entered the shed.

Frustrated, O'Brien walked outside and looked around.

"Where do you think they went Boss?"

"I don't know Mullins but we sure as hell better find out. Keep searching with the dogs, maybe they'll pick up the trail somewhere else and send us in the right direction."

"Yes sir," answered Officer Mullins and went off to carry out his orders.

O'Brien continued to look directly at the shed. It just didn't add up. How could they have vanished without a trace so quickly? He started to walk around the shed. He found that he could make it all the way around and back to the point at which he started in approximately 35 steps. On his first three turns, he found nothing out of the ordinary but the fourth time he began to kick at the dirt around the shed and suddenly, his foot hit against something and he heard a metallic clang. He quickly stooped down and dusted the area with his hand. The more dirt he brushed away, the more metal he uncovered until a rusty panel stood before him in all its glory. O'Brien shook his head in awe and muttered,

"Well I'll be . . ." before shouting, "Over here," to get the attention of his officers.

Hasty footsteps thundered in his direction and excited dogs barked at the sudden commotion. Soon, six men were staring down at the panel trying to figure out the best way to open it since there appeared to be no handle. Eventually, Sergeant O'Brien produced two knives and handed one to Officer Mullins. Together they managed to pry the panel open and they all looked down below. Flashlights ready, they descended into the tunnel one by one and looked around.

"Look boss, they were definitely down here – there's another drop of blood."

"Hmmmn. Ok – this tunnel probably slowed them down a lot so lets see if we can follow above ground. Carter, go get out a map of the area."

"Yes sir."

O'Brien heaved himself out of the tunnel after everyone else. He was not as young as he used to be but he liked to think that his age didn't affect his ability to do his job and if it did, he clearly preferred it if no-one noticed. A sheet of darkness had descended and the officers were never aware of his small struggle. He walked over to where they had congregated. The dogs had been put back into their cages and Officer Carter had set up a large map on the hood of one of the cars. O'Brien stepped up to it, his eyes darting about for a few seconds before he found what he was looking for.

"All right. This is where we are right here. The tunnel was heading west so . . ."

He trailed his finger along the map until he found what he was looking for.

"Bingo," he said confidently, tapping an area on the map. "I'll bet they've headed right for the woods. Smart - but now we can head them off. I want a perimeter set up. We'll never find their trail in the dark but the minute they step out of those woods . . . we'll be waiting for 'em!"

Excited now, he rushed to the car to call in to the station and ask for reinforcements. If this was going to work, they were going to need as many men as possible. Once he had been assured that all available officers were on their way he started up the car, waited for Mullins to get in the passenger seat and then drove to the outskirts of the woods. He parked at a slanted angle, the edge of the woods right in front of him. No wind disturbed the trees and there was an eerie stillness that caused him to slow his breathing and become even more alert. It was too quiet. The moonlight was suddenly blocked by a stray cloud and O'Brien almost expected a cackling witch in a black hat to fly out at him on a broom stick. He tensed as he watched the two other cars align along side him. Now all he could do was wait; wait for the other officers to arrive and wait for the cons to emerge from the woods. As long as they didn't take too long to get there and get organised, there was no way the cons could escape. They had them boxed in.

"Hey boss, what if they made it out of there already?"

"No there's no way – unless they had magic broomsticks. It's a good few hours walk down from where we were to the woods and then on top of that it's about a day's walk from one end of the woods to another. Plus don't forget that they have a hostage. I'm sure she's not making life easy for them."

Mullins grinned as he realised what that meant.

"All right! That means we got 'em then! No way they're getting past us! Do you have a comb in the car ?"

"What? What the hell do you need a comb for?"

"Well, when we catch them we're going to be all over the news. Practically every single channel, Boss! I've been practicing my look – you know, my serious I'm-a-cop-and-I-mean-business look – check it out, what do you think?"

He raised his head, stuck his chin out a little bit and glanced smoulderingly at his superior officer. O'Brien sighed and shook his head at the young officer then turned his eyes back to the road. In the distance he suddenly saw an army of small red and yellow circles moving in their direction. As they got closer, they got larger and he smiled. The cavalry had arrived. Soon, they would be set up on the outskirts of the woods and no matter which direction the escapees went, there would be no getting away this time. . .


	6. Chapter 6

When Michael awoke he felt a soft weight on his shoulder and without opening his eyes he moved his head slightly. His chin brushed against something soft and silky. It took him a moment to realise that it was Sara's hair but when he did, he quickly opened his eyes for confirmation. Light flooded into the cabin and entangled itself in her hair. It seemed to shimmer in the morning light even though she wasn't moving and Michael was sure that he could make out different shades of reddish brown. He smiled to himself as he tried to count them, taking care not to move a muscle in the process. Then he shook his head slightly as if to rid himself of the sentimentality but not forcefully enough to wake Sara up. He looked around for Lincoln. They needed to get moving as soon as possible.

Lincoln had been up for a good hour but he hadn't had the heart to disturb Michael and Sara. They'd looked so peaceful where they were; Michael with a slight smile on his face and Sara with her head comfortably resting on his shoulder. So instead of waking them, he went outside and looked for two things; any sign that they had been followed and some sort of food that they could eat. As good as the hot dogs had tasted last night, they hadn't been very filling and Lincoln had awoken to a growling stomach. Luckily, the woods were full of berries and he ate his fill before heading back to the cottage with a shirt full for Michael and Sara. He had seen or heard no sign of anyone else in the woods but he didn't think that they could take that for granted so they really would have to get going soon. As he walked back into the cabin, he saw that Michael was awake. He motioned for him to wake Sara up and Michael nodded in understanding. Lincoln moved into the kitchen and put the berries down before walking into the bathroom to wash up.

Michael looked down at Sara again. Then he carefully held her head up as he moved to face her.

"Sara," he called softly. She stirred and slowly opened her eyes. Once they focused she realised that she was staring right into a pair of startling blue pools. For a moment she just gazed right into Michael's eyes completely forgetting where she was. Then, realising what she was doing she quickly straightened up, broke eye contact, cleared her throat and said,

"Morning Michael."

He smiled and removed the hand that had been holding her head up.

"Good morning."

Lincoln emerged from the bathroom and smiled when he saw Sara was awake and groggily rubbing her eyes.

"Morning doc – sleep well?"

"Surprisingly, yes."

Lincoln smiled and said "There are some berries in the kitchen – sorry there isn't anything else but it's all I could find. No pancakes in the woods I'm afraid."

Sara chuckled and replied, "The berries are just fine, thank you."

Lincoln turned to look at Michael.

"We should probably head out as soon as possible. It's not night anymore so it'll be a lot easier for the cops to pick up our trail now."

"Yes, I was thinking the same thing," Michael said, a solemn look replacing the smile on his face.

Ten minutes later, they were once again heading out the door. Sara looked back at the cottage one last time. Even though they had only been there one night, she'd grown strangely fond of the place and she was grateful for the shelter and temporary relief it had provided. She'd even seen a change in Michael last night. It seemed as though a burden had been lifted from his shoulders but this morning it was back once again.

"Ready to get going again?" Michael asked Sara.

"Yeah but when this whole thing is over – I'm never exercising again!"

Michael chuckled as they headed past the small cottage and to the outskirts of the woods. They'd been walking in the same direction for almost two hours when they finally saw it. Light seemed to flood in though the trees directly in front of them. It was the edge of the woods. Sara wondered where they would be going next but Michael had a look of intense concentration on his face and she thought it best not to disturb him. He realised, of course, that the minute they stepped out of those woods they would have no cover. There was nowhere for them to hide for a good three miles and then of course, they would need transportation. The next few hours were crucial and potentially very dangerous but there was no other possible way to proceed so they kept walking. Finally, they emerged into the sunlight, leaving the shelter of the trees behind and they winced for a moment as their eyes got used to the light. Michael took a step forward and his heart pounded in his chest as someone he couldn't quite make out yelled,

"FREEZE!"

His eyes focused and that's when he saw them. There were policemen running right at them from every direction. Michael put a protective hand behind Sara's back and started backing into the woods.

"DON'T MOVE OR WE'LL SHOOT!" The voice bellowed.

Michael swallowed hard and looked over at Lincoln who was slowly backing away as well. Sara's eyes darted all around her from the armed police officers running in their direction to the bewildered brothers who were beginning to realise that they were trapped. Lincoln tripped suddenly and quickly stepped backwards to regain his balance. A shot rang out and a bullet slammed right into a tree directly to Sara's left. Startled, she gasped and stumbled backwards. Disturbed birds shrieked angrily and flew up into the sky.

"Don't shoot!" Sara said quietly at first. Then, harnessing the adrenaline that was coursing through her veins she shouted,

"DON'T SHOOT! We're unarmed!"

Sergeant O'Brien registered the female voice and replied,

"Don't worry ma'am, this will all be over soon."

Sara looked at Michael. He had a forlorn look on his face and the panic was evident. Lincoln knew it was hopeless and he looked over at Michael as if to say, "Thanks for trying, bro." Then he slowly raised his hands to surrender and Michael hung his head in defeat before doing the same. Looking at the beaten brothers Sara felt a sharp pang of sadness. The little time that she had spent with Lincoln was enough to convince her that he was no murderer. There was no way he could be. There was just no way - but it was too late now. There was nothing that could be done. Everything happened as if in slow motion. Sara was dazed and barely noticed a police officer leading her to a car. She watched, helplessly as Michael and Lincoln were roughly pushed to their knees and cuffed. Sergeant O'Brien frogmarched them to the back of his car and then addressed his officers.

"I want you to do full sweep of the woods. There might still be some cons in there somewhere. I'll take these guys down to the station."

After seeing his officers set off confidently into the woods, O'Brien walked over to Sara who was gazing at Michael and Lincoln in the back seat of the car behind her.

"Doctor Tancredi?" he asked as he stooped down in front of her trying to establish eye contact. Sara pulled her eyes away from Michael and looked at the policeman in front of her. His face was kind but he had a proud look about him, as though he felt that he had just done something spectacular and was merely waiting for someone to pat him on the back and congratulate him. When Sara said nothing, he continued to speak.

"I'm Sergeant O'Brien. I know you've been through a terrible ordeal but I'd like you to come down to the station with me to make a statement. Do you think you could do that?"

Sara looked at him again her head tilted to the side slightly. She nodded once in confirmation.

"Ok that's great. Would you mind riding in the same car as those two or would you like me to get another officer to escort you to the station?"

She cleared her throat and spoke up quickly,

"No that's fine. I don't mind."

O'Brien nodded and stood to lead the way to the other vehicle. Sara got into the passenger seat and looked back at Michael quickly through the metallic divider that separated her from him. He was whispering something under his breath that she couldn't quite make out and shaking his head with a sense of disbelief. Sara couldn't help but feel overwhelmed with concern. She remembered what had happened to Michael back at the prison when they'd needed to move him to the psych ward and she sincerely hoped that he was not going to suffer another psychotic break. She looked over at Sergeant O'Brien who was settling into the seat next to her and he gave her a small smile. They drove off in silence; defeated silence for the cons and an awkward silence for Sara and the Sergeant. After a good twenty five minutes of driving the Sergeant suddenly came to an abrupt halt.

"What the . . ."

Sara looked up when she heard this and saw that a huge lorry carrying a pile of large logs had overturned spilling its contents and completely blocking the road in front of them. O'Brien got out of the car and ran over to check if anyone had been hurt.

"Michael," Lincoln said, pushing his brother with his shoulder. He immediately saw that this could be their only chance to get away. "Michael come on we can get out of this."

"It's too late. Even if we make it out of the car, he'll shoot us before we can run two steps."

Sara turned and looked at Michael. He looked so lost that she had a sudden urge to get out of the car, head around to where he sat and shake the defeat right out of him! This feeling was replaced by mounds of sympathy and an irresistible urge to help him. Before she knew what had happened, it all became quite clear to her. She knew exactly what she had to do. The only question was – was she prepared to do it?


End file.
